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Ashkenaz Jewish Style Deli
Categories: Event Planning & Services Caterers Restaurants Delis Caterers, Delis [Edit]
12 E Cedar St(between Rush St & State St)
Chicago, IL 60611
Neighborhoods: Near North Side, Gold Coast
(312) 944-5006
- Nearest Transit:
-
Clark/division (Red Line)
Chicago-Red (Red Line)
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 8 am - 6 pm
- Attire:
- Casual
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Price Range:
-
$
- Good for Groups:
- No
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- Yes
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- No
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch
- Alcohol:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Has TV:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
Craig G. said: "If you love vegetarian/vegan food or you have a gluten intolerance, Sal's is your deli dream come true. I'm sure there are a lot of other good things there (like the tomato soup), but these two features will keep me coming back to…" read more »
105 reviews for Ashkenaz Jewish Style Deli
Review Highlights
"The matzo ball soup was very good as well."
(in 21 reviews)
"Ashkenaz has a fantastic corned beef on rye."
(in 23 reviews)
"The pastrami is perfectly seasoned and savory."
(in 34 reviews)
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105 reviews in English
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Review from Jeff C.
Chicago, IL
9/15/2011
I think they have really good chicken soup. Their corned beef is good-not as good as Manny's deli. They have a good selection of lox, sable etc which are better than Manny's.
Reuben's are good as well-but Manny's reuben is better because it's toasted and has quite a bit of butter in it :)
This is a good carry out deli for the Gold Coast. -
Review from Elisha M.
Chicago, IL
12/20/2011
The good: The food was decent. It was $8.50 for my half sandwich, bowl of soup, and potato salad.
The bad: The manager was quite rude to the staff, even in front of customers. In the middle of ordering my sandwich, the manager walked away. Then another staff member came up and I ordered again, but he explained the cheap sandwich/soup deal and I changed my order. Ten minutes later, the manager walked up with my original order. He never asked what I wanted on it, what bread I wanted, or if I wanted anything extra. He just walked away and created who knows what. I apologized and explained I finished my order with someone else. He blankly stared at me. Stared. At. Me. Then said, "Who did you order with so I can yell at him later?" I couldn't answer. Who would answer that? What manager would say that? The other staff member gave me my order, I paid, sat down to eat and ... what was that? I hear him scolding the staff for actually helping me. He said they were idiots. It was so incredibly rude and heartbreaking.
It's a convenient location for me, but I won't ever be back based on how the manager treats his staff. The staff deserves better than having him as a manager.
Also, everything was served on styrofoam, which is just ridiculous. -
Review from Jimmy N.
Chicago, IL
12/10/2011 1 Check-in Here
I went here per recommendation from another yelper and also because there was one of those instant groupon things for this place. I ordered the reuben for about $10 and change, which turned to $6 and change after my groupon. Meh. I've experienced better (thus the 2 stars). This review is based solely on the reuben I ordered and my experience eating it inside the restaurant.
What this place does well/adequately:
1. It's in a pretty good location. Many Jewish delis are in more ghetto areas of the city, but Ashkenaz is in as ritzy a location as it gets.
2. Prices are... not overly expensive... (note that I didn't say cheap) considering cured meat fare and location.
3. Good service. I should have probably put this as #1. They didn't give ME good service per say, because I didn't really need any, but I ate my sandwich in the shop and I observed they serviced others well =)
Why I probably won't be coming back:
1. They don't cure their own meats here... They get it packaged from Vienna meats. No, this isn't some insider information. You can see the packaged meats from their deli windows. #FAIL. #FAIL. Seriously now, if I wanted packaged meats, I would go to some chained sandwich place like Subway.
2. The sauerkraut tasted different... One of the reviewers on here said it tasted a little sweet and I completely agree. Not to say it's bad... or good... just different.
3. The sandwich was pretty small considering the price... Sorry, but I can't afford mediocre food at mediocre portions at non-cheap prices!!!
4. Did I mention they didn't cure their own meats??? What sorta self-respecting Jewish deli does that???
And another Chicago Jewish deli fail...
(My stars are reflective of my comparison of this place with other Jewish delis I've experienced. However, if I compare it to other sandwich places in general, I would probably give it 3 stars. It's not a bad sandwich place- meaning I'm not going out of my way to avoid it- but also meaning I wouldn't go out of my way to go there- and also meaning I would probably exert some effort finding other things to eat if I were in the vicinity)Listed in: Jewish Delis
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Review from Carly G.
Chicago, IL
11/30/2011
Ordered through http://GrubHub.com
I am writing as I am eating the lunch I just had delivered from there.
Food is good (One Star) but the scam of the delivery has me F*&^%$# outraged!
Half Corned Beef sammie, split pea soup, macaroni salad, snapple and some pickles.
Sandwich was decent, split pea soup was homemade; reminded me of mom's.
Macaroni haven't gotten too yet and pickles are crisp.
Snapple is well, Snapple.
Here is where I am gonna start to rage:
On GrubHub's site (where the owner inputs or verifies all of the information), it clearly states $4 for delivery charge.
It doesn't say $4 for walking, $10 for driving, or $25 if they take a fucking spaceship.
Why is my delivery more than my meal?
Why didn't you clarify to me on the phone that it was going to be more because I am more than 4 blocks away (total of 7)?
When I called back to have this explained to me, I wanted to speak to the manager, instead the person answering the phone relayed what I was saying to the manager in turn I heard what she was saying, and then he had to explain it back to me.
So you're telling me that the manager cannot deal with this directly?
Thanks for the $6 credit for when I NEVER come into your shithole!
Bottom line, I don't like being duped, I don't like paying $20 for lunch, and I don't like when people can't address things professionally. -
Review from Saira K.
2/9/2012
I quite enjoyed the reuben here - portion size/price was fair. The lunch specials seem to be a good deal.
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Review from Amy R.
Chicago, IL
11/26/2011
This makes me really sad. I grew up in the G.C. And this place was really good.
But I went there today, and yuck--the men serving the sandwiches have dirty fingernails, no gloves on, and they are making my sandwich.
Touching the money, rubbing their beards, touching their cell phones---and then touching the food they are making for customers???
Where the hell is the owner? If they keep this staff on---they will either be shut down by OSHA, or by their old customers refusing to eat food that's been rubbed on by every body part.
I'm sorry. Gross, nasty----get your act together. Please. For the sake of humanity....you are working with food!
And I love dive like places, Indian, Chinese.....they are not fancy....but, THIS display of rubbing your fingers, hands all over everything. So super repulsive.
I'm sorry Ashkenaz. I really am sorry. But this is what I experienced today.
And, they put a tomato that was fermenting on my sandwich. Thank you guys for being observant. Tasted like rotten tomato sandwich:( and I paid money for it.
I'm so sad, because I used to love you Ashkenaz.... -
Review from Ari C.
Chicago, IL
8/12/2011
I'll start off with the good: the sandwiches are pretty good, as are the desserts. The latkes far surpassed what I expected. Personally, I find the soups a little generic, but I guess when you grow up with a Jewish mother who makes homemade Chicken Matzah Ball soup every week, anything made in bulk just isn't going to cut it. That being said, I *have* had good deli soup; anyone who remembers Selig's Deli up in the north shore knows that good soup at a deli is possible.
Unfortunately, that's it for the good, and the bad far outweighs it.
As another reviewer pointed out, they do not do their own meat or use a local butcher. The meat they use is decent quality, but it's still not as good as it could be.
And then there's the price. Though the sandwich prices look reasonable at first glance, when it sinks in that it's for *just* the sandwich, you realize that this is not going to be a cheap outing. If you want a (full sandwich), maybe a soup, some chips or dessert, and a drink, you're upwards of $20. Normally I get worked up about restaurants that only serve soft drinks in expensive cans, but seeing as that's pretty much a deli standard, I'll let it go for this review.
I could stomach the above issues and still want to go to Ashkenaz to eat but for my biggest gripe about this place: it closes at way-too-early-o'clock. Forget about ever getting dinner here, unless you plan way ahead or are a billion years old and eat dinner at 5. I know that delis aren't traditionally open very late, but Manny's manages to stay open until 8. Hell, I'd settle for 7:30. It seems like every other time I try to go there, the place is closed. As such, I've given up. Not even for lunch anymore. My eateries are like relationships: they need to be there for me when I want them, within reason. I find Ashkenaz's closing time to be unreasonably early, and so I've bid them adieu. Heavy-handed? Perhaps. But there is better deli food in Chicago for the price, so why waste my time? -
Review from Jiordan C.
San Francisco, CA
I sat outside on a nice cool day and had the nicest, most affordable lunch at Ashkenaz's. It was worth my trek way uptown. Basically:
A fantastic little out-of-the-way deli near the Newberry Library, Washington Square Park, and a host of other obscure shops in a nice part of Chicago. For something like $8.50, you can get a lunch combo of 1/2 sandwich, 1/2 soup, and a side with endless possibilities. And the service is really great.
I had a turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, and cucumber on challah with the matzo ball soup and a side of some kind of Hawaiian-ized salad. The sandwich was delicious, as was the soup (note: biggest matzo ball in the history of matzo balls, and as delicious as it was large), but the salad was a little too funky for my taste. But I'm in no way a mayonnaise fan, so I'm not the best judge of deli side salads. -
Review from Kent S.
Chicago, IL
7/27/2011 12 Check-ins Here
I already knew that the latke here is great enough that I've made meals of just eating 5 or 6 of them in a single sitting, but the Rueben here is really where it's at.
Sure, there are plenty of other options in the area if you're looking for something that you could find in every major or mid sized city in the country. That's cool. I've never understood the idea of comfort food, but maybe I'm just not fat enough.
The staff is great, the food is fantastic and I'll be back next week. -
Review from darl b.
Chicago, IL
9/21/2011
ok enough of the meshugganah let's be honest.
I wouldn't go here for a high quality *lean* corned beef.
I wouldn't go here for a high quality pastrami.
I wouldn't go here for most sides.
So, what are you going here for? -
Review from Tim O.
Chicago, IL
7/3/2011
I've been to Ashkanez twice and both times I was satisfied. I love delis (Jewish delis in particular) and being from New York I had high standards. I went with Chicken Salad on an everything bagel which satisfied my appetite, however I felt like it was a bit overpriced (about $11 with a can of seltzer). The next time around I went for the $8.50 half sandwich/side/soup combo which was a VERY good decision since I was able to sample the other Deli-cacies. I played it safe with turkey on rye, matzah ball soup and macaroni salad. The soup portion was enormous but I wish I got a little more salad (mainly because it was so tasty).
There are seats inside and outside of the deli, plus it's located on a quiet street making it perfect to soak up some sun and catch up with a friend. -
Review from Christina M.
Chicago, IL
7/10/2011 7 Check-ins Here
I really Love this place.
I get the half sandwich half soup.
Ussually Salami Sandwich and Matzoball soup.
So delicious.
Why go to subway when here they gladly pile on the meat.
I tried the chipotle mustard also super good.... -
Review from Double L.
Chicago, IL
6/8/2011
Not that impressed.
Used to come here often when I lived in Gold Coast for Dr. Browns or a bagel. Was in the area the other day so I thought I would go back.
In my mind you shouldn't have to toast a bagel if you get it from a Jewish deli. It should be fresh, like baked/boiled that day.
The bagel I got tasted worse than something that could be purchased in groups of 6 on the bread aisle of your supermarket. Not only that I thought I might chip a tooth while eating it.
If you are paying $3.50 for a bagel certain expectations come in to play.
Had other items on their menu as well and they are just so so. Fairly expensive for the quality so that sort of a bummer to. -
Review from Irrelevant W.
San Mateo, CA
9/15/2011
Came here as part of the Chicago Food Planet tour. Got to build my own hot reuben sandwich using fresh pastrami. WOW! The pastrami is really, really amazing here. It was warm, very well-seasoned with a strong smokiness, and very tender (a bit too salty, but I suppose this is de facto for cured meats). One of my best food experiences ever and I'm not even normally a fan of cured meats!
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Review from Jamie B.
Chicago, IL
10/16/2011
Pretty decent sandwiches, soups, and sides. Probably won't be going back due to the lack of pleasantry from the staff.
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Review from Alisa P.
Chicago, IL
12/15/2011
Went here with a Groupon Now deal recently which was $1 for an $8 sandwich. I was pleasantly surprised by this little place. It's an authentic deli with a tasty nice sized reuben. The meat was flavorful and fresh, the sauce perfectly tangy and the bread savory. I would recommend just doing take-out though since this place is small and seems to get crowded at peak times.
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Review from Mara A.
Chicago, IL
3/3/2011 2 Check-ins Here
Every jewish holiday my grandma orders from here and I love it! From the matzo ball soup to the hallah. Yum yum.
Unfortunately my grandma passed away this week, but I will order food from here in her honor for the holidays! -
Review from Hillary E.
Chicago, IL
2/6/2011
I had a friend in town and we decided to try somewhere around me for a late lunch. I had my eye on Ashkenaz for awhile and thought this was the perfect opportunity to sit down and eat before hitting up the stores.
I think we should have paid more attention to what everyone's sandwiches looked like, because I don't normally eat tons of meat- and the specialty sandwich I had was chock full of meat - and pretty much only meat. Both of us could barely finish one half but tried to make it look like we ate more since we were dining there and felt guilty about wasting food.
The place definitely has character-if I decide to try it again, I might get the soup or just some bagels or bread- no more meat for me! I do have to say that they have reasonable prices for the area- and I did enjoy the two pickles they gave me on the side.
If you haven't been before, you stand in line for awhile until someone decides to ask you what you'd like. Then you wait awkwardly while other people who were originally behind you start paying and you're still waiting to figure out do I pay now or after I eat? You pay when they say you pay (now) - at least they take cards! -
Review from Ashley P.
Chicago, IL
4/18/2011
Absolutely FANTASTIC. I first found out about this place from a food tour I went on as part of a project for my blog. This was the first stop and they had us sample the corned beef on marbled rye. Never have I ever tasted better in my life.
I went back just a few weeks ago and also sampled the potato salad and matzo ball soup. Excellent. It's a small space, which I don't mind because most people seem to carry out, so it's not necessarily crowded. It's a nice atmosphere to sit and enjoy a meal in, though I fear it gets lost among all the major chains surrounding it. It's a very unassuming storefront but definitely one I consider a hidden gem in the city. I will be back many more times. There are so many items that look delicious on their menu. My guess is that they get super busy right now as it's Passover season. If you haven't been, I would definitely recommend this place. So tasty. -
Review from Pamela P.
3/10/2011
I've been stuffing my face with chicken noodle soup since the time of Adam and Eve. Ashkenaz's chicken noodle soup is addictively tasty and dreamily salty with just the right amount of thin carbolicious noodles.
The place is small and somewhat cramped and overstuffed with meats but for this mostly vegetarian there's plenty of options. Their swiss cheese sandwich on rye is extra flavorful and the potato latkis are worth writing home to mama about. The people are super nice and really treat everyone like family.
My husband swears by their pastrami and corned beef sandwiches and apparently their bagels are just divine. Reasonably priced and just a must try! -
Review from Y.D. K.
Des Plaines, IL
8/2/2011
Potentially, this place seems to be a great place - unfortunately, getting food via Seamless/Delivery will take a toll on the food's quality, therefore this Deli's 3 star.
Otherwise, the food is good, consistent: sandwiches are well wrapped to stay together and are tasty; included pickles are wrapped in wax paper to avoid spillage to other items (a good thing). I tried the matzo ball soup and though I didn't like the matzo ball itself, the soup had a good broth to it and was tasty.
I'll need to actually visit this place to give a more complete and well rounded review - Seamless/Delivery doesn't do it justice for freshness and preservation of its quality.
To be continued... -
Review from Brandon T.
Chicago, IL
7/20/2011
Way over rated. I got matzoball soup, a corned beef sandwich and some coleslaw. The sandwich was ok, but the matzoball was hard as a rock under the 1/2 inch edible shell. Oh and the coleslaw tasted like the fish it was sitting next to in the case. So if you can imagine it was beyond disgusting. Not sure why they don't cover the fish and save everything else from tasting like it, but maybe that's your thing, fishy coleslaw.
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Review from Adam E.
Chicago, IL
4/25/2010
Oy gavalt what an amazing place. Finally somewhere in my neighborhood I can both stand and afford to go to more than once a month :-)
This review begins many years ago... when I was a little boy, long before yelp, the web, and cell phones, I frequently visited my grandparents in brooklyn, and my grandfather would ALWAYS take me to a jewish deli several blocks away. My father made a point of trying to find some near us in Massachusetts as I grew up. I've done the tour of jewish deli's in brookline, MA. I've found some hidden gems in upstate new york... but then theres Ashkenaz.
But to truly present my case, I needed backup, in the form of my second expert witness, my father. He grew up in Brooklyn, where my grandfather ran a gourmet food store. There are things we disagree on, (red sox / yankees) and then there are jewish deli's. So when my father came to visit me back in march, I took him to Ashkenaz which I had been meaning to try. It absolutely blew me away. The reuben, my go-to, was phenomenal. And it was more than a mouthful! It was so good I refused to be full, even if my stomach exploded it would have been worth it. My father went with his standby, the pastrami and was not disappointed. In fact, when he got home (I'm told within minutes of walking in the door) he emailed me saying that he wanted to come visit me again soon so that we can go back to Ashkenaz.
Sure enough, he came back later that month with my mother in tow and we went back again. Having my jewish mother as a fan, is also a pretty big endorsement. And while I prefer my mother's matzo-balls (even if I didn't have to..), I don't have to go all the way home to Boston to get them from Ashkenaz and they are pretty close.
So, what's awesome about Ashkenaz?
1. All the classic kosher style deli meets piled high
2. the gnoshing: blintzes, knishes, rugelach, matzahball soup, etc.. even cans of gefilte fish (not that I'll ever eat it) and borscht.
3. Dr. Brown's Cream Soda. This is an absolute classic, and there is nothing else quite like it. It really is the icing on the cake.
4. The feeling. You walk in and you really feel like you are in a classic deli.
Cons:
- not a huge place so there isn't much room for people in tow. but you can get it to go and dine together somewhere else if you have to i suppose
- i can't come up with any cons
- staff can be hit or miss
- my mother fears there will decreased demand for her classics when I'm home. -
Review from Aaron L.
Chicago, IL
1/21/2011
2.5* roast beef
4* corned beef/pastrami mix
3.5* reuben -
Review from gfiddy f.
Chicago, IL
5/22/2011
Just had my first of what will be dozens of stops here. Sublime.
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Review from Ruth Y.
Philadelphia, PA
5/17/2010
I recently took a vacay to Chicago and did the Near North food tour (reviewed separately). One of the stops on the tour was Ashkenaz's Deli. We were served their homemade Vienna Beef pastrami sandwich with homemade Russian dressing. The ingredients were super fresh. The rye bread, which we were told is baked and delivered daily, was very soft and not overly sharp tasting. It was addictive. The pastrami was flavorful and the sauerkraut, which I believe was also homemade, was tangy. We also had some Swiss cheese with the sandwich. But the standout, for me, was the Russian Dressing. I dislike Russian dressing, but loved their version with beets and eggs - Delish! Even if you think you do not like Russian dressing, like me, the Russian dressing is worth a taste; it will surprise you.
The place is small and cute, but looked super clean. Although we were not served by the wait staff, they took the time to wish us well and seemed extremely friendly. -
Review from Jenny T.
Chicago, IL
1/5/2009
Some seriously good food.
In all honesty & seriousness, this will become one of my regular lunch spots. Ashkenaz smells wonderful, tastes wonderful, and is just simply wonderful. They have nice specials, such as the boxed lunch special which is whole sandwich, side, chips, and treat & also a half sandwich and 2 sides (including soup!). I had the Matzo ball soup, 1/2 of a corned beef sammie on rye, and a cranberry juice on a cold Saturday morning. I entered a bit sluggish & crabby, but left happy & full. Hip, hip, hurray!
Don't go here in a hurry though. The staff is a bit slow & seems honestly confused by what you're ordering. Also, it's a bit pricey & was v. surprised when our lunch cost $22.00. It takes awhile to get your food, but once you do you'll be oh so satisfied. -
Review from Erika G.
8/28/2008
I did not know what Sable fish was. Had never eaten it. This made my sexy Semite quite verklempt, so he schlepped this shiksa down to have a little nosh. Mazel tov!
I am an afficionado of delis, having grown up eating countless corned beef sandwiches with my dad and family, who love deli food in general. Brown mustard and dill pickles, Reubens and knishes and potato pancakes! And I have actually been known to derisively refer to some mass produced bagels as even "too goy" for me, a goy.
Got my sable fish sandwich, on a bagel with cream cheese. Super rich white fish, could almost be a good substitute for forbidden Chilean Sea Bass if prepared differently. Plus, oily fish is brain food, and also lovin' on those heart attack preventing Omega 3 fatty acids. In other words, yum, healthy yum. Am now anxious to try different varieties - smoked? pickled? Go here for the sable, yes, because it doesn't seem to be readily available at many places.
My companion, DeliciousDeliMensch, had a Reuben sandwich and matzo ball soup. I'd never had matzo ball soup - and found it to be good enough, nothing exceptional. I probably need to have a more delicious variety.
The Reuben, ACH! ACH! Not enough sauerkraut - but this is always my complaint. Wanted it to be tangier (that's "more sour", not a city in Morocco). The dressing on it was some weird beet schmata that just didn't taste quite right. The corned beef. Eh. Not one of the better Reubens, but eh - in a pinch, what can you do?
Oh, and the SERVICE! Please! *clutches heart* Can we GET some around here before we die of hunger and start stinkin' up the place? Two people don't need to be working on a large order, one can take other people's orders, no? We were in the deli for 20 minutes before we got our food. People!
And pricey. Quite pricey for deli food, I thought. But then this is the Gold Coast.
It's nice that this place is a little oasis of real in the creeping homogeneity of the chain restaurants and expensive condos, but I think they need to get back to their roots a bit. They've been here forever, apparently not updated since the 70's, which - good.Listed in: Reuben Sandwiches, Delis
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Review from T a.
Los Angeles, CA
9/17/2007
This is, by far, the best meal I've had all week in Chi-town, even though this was not an authentic Jewish deli. And how does a Catholic Vietnamese gal know this?? Because my mouth-watering pastrami sandwich was served with cream cheese and chives.
Meat and dairy in one establishment?? Not kosher! But, oh my Jesus, this was the best pastrami in the world!!
Yes, it was an $8 sandwich, but worth every penny! I also had the Potato Pancake, but I think I tasted sauerkraut - not a huge fan of sauerkraut. The Tri-bean Salad was excellent! The Pasta Salad looked good, but I didn't have any.
So what would Jesus do, you ask? I'm certain that he would B-line for Ashkenaz!! -
Review from Chaviva G.
Denver, CO
10/31/2007
One word: JACKPOT!
I enjoy Eppy's, but this ... this ... this is the Jewish mecca. This is the ultimate sandwich joint where you can get the typical fare of knishes, kreplach, lox, matzo ball soup. You name it, they have it. This little gem would be easily missed if it weren't for the bright neon sign outside that screams "EAT MY SANDWICHES! THEY ARE SO GOOD!"
I had wanted to visit this place for years since spotting it while visiting town over spring break once while in college. I finally found the time to hit it up and boy was I pleasantly surprised at how good it really was.
I opted for the special, which includes a half-sandwich and your choice of two from salad, ice cream, chips or soup. I went for the turkey breast sandwich with matzo ball soup and the creamy coleslaw (they also have old fashioned style coleslaw, which is on the brighter side). The sandwich was made to order on challah (their bread options are endless) and the soup was hot enough that I transported it to a coffee shop and ate it more than an hour later. The coleslaw was near PERFECT, and for frequent readers you know my major restaurant test in this town is the coleslaw factor. This place wins, being second only to the coleslaw at Western Round-up. Though these places are probably about a millionth of a point apart on the scale of coleslaw quality.
That was a sandwich, soup and a side salad all for $7.50. This was more than enough food for that price -- the soup portion itself was gigantic, talk about the world's largest matzo ball. The coleslaw portion also was much larger than you'd get anywhere else (other than Western Round-up). Overall, the cost for the portion was on par if not an incredibly good deal.
This is my go-to spot now. I intend on going here again and again, with plans to try the turkey pastrami and the kreplach, not to mention the other Jewish delicacies that they sport. Amen for finally finding a delicious quick deli with everything I could hope for and more! -
Review from Brian L.
Yea, it was good. I'm not a Jewish deli expert. I'm a food eating expert. I got the daily lunch special (1/2 sandwich, soup/salad/drink/chips, and a side) for $8.50. I got the pastrami on rye. Awesome. The pastrami tasted great and was super tender. The matzo ball soup was quite large and the matzo ball was gigantic (didn't finish it). Mac salad had a bit too much mayo, but it was still good.
Since I got a canned soda too, it was a little over $10. I'm fine with that...it was delicious, I'm full, and I got to yelp about it. Great success! -
Review from Michael S.
Denver, CO
2/3/2009 1 photo
Lox-O-Meter points to "O" for overpriced but old school.
You can get an authentic Yid-dish here. It does smell like my Grandmother's matzo ball soup in here. The hand sliced lox is unbeatable. You can dependably buy chubs, which are harder and harder to find in Chicago.
But, prices really are at the Outer Limits of Reasonable. Sandwiches taste great but the portions for the price are very average.
In all candor, I liked and was a devotee of the lower rent Bagel Nosh when it was a bit north on State St. Their food was every bit as good, very reasonably priced with very generous portions, and the service and their wonderful manager, Harvey (for those of you truly old schoolers who remember), made the place warm - exactly the opposite of Ashkenaz.
The people who work in Ashkenaz have the personality of a post. They are annoyingly indifferent and slow.Listed in: Lox-O-Meter
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Review from Ellie B.
Chicago, IL
8/8/2007
I can only comment on the food as my boss decided to graciously order us lunch today.
Holy pastrami, I think I'm in loooove! Fresh challe? Check. Meaty pastrami? Check. Yellow mustard? Check.
I had the 1/2 sandwich, soup and side combo. My grandma would have approved. The potato salad was awesome and the mushroom barley soup was quite delicious, though I would have liked more barley.
It's absurd how much food they give for the price! I can't wait to try more! -
Review from Patrick C.
Chicago, IL
8/12/2008
This place is great.
I used to go here all the time for lunch when I interned in the Gold Coast a few years ago. The pastrami sandwich is ungodly. -
Review from Jeremy K.
1/20/2009
Stumbled upon this place more or less by luck with my father while visiting Chicago. Its both modest and delicious!
The corned beef was moist and plentiful and the coleslaw was fresh and tasty! My kind of place! We ordered, paid and a couple of minutes later our freshly sliced sandwiches were ready to be devoured. Didn't take long either!
We ate on their gorgeous little terrace, in the sun and people-watched between every bite we took. Man do I love Chicago. And corned beef.
An amazing, affordable experience that I recommend to anyone who wants a good deli in the windy city! -
Review from Shannon P.
Chicago, IL
9/28/2010
The turkey pastrami with kraut and mustard was fine. Swell even. We would have another.
The matzoh soup- meh- a disappointment. No, the matzoh it isn't a plump and breast perfect dumpling. It's a glob of matzoh that settles at the bottom of a styrofoam cup. The broth isn't there flavor wise. Also, I'm all for sneaking in the veg, just have it make some bloody sense. No one wants to find bits of broccoli head in their matzoh broth but in the brie. Don't cross breed it, baby.
I don't shout out other places while reviewing another. Coming from Los Angeles, there are some serious Jewish Deli's that I grew up in. In this situation of: eat this soup or plan to embark on prepping at 7:00am so that enjoyment is ample at 5:00 pm, I choose the day labor of soup love.
Service was friendly and apt. -
Review from Allen S.
Chicago, IL
12/20/2011
I live on the Gold Coast and have tried to depend on Ashkenaz Deli for 9 years, and they never failed to disappoint me. Today was the last straw. I ordered one dozen potato pancakes for the first night of Hanukkah to be picked up at 3 p.m. At 2:50 p.m. they called my home to tell me that in the morning a "new" employee gave my order to someone else by mistake. To top it off, they had no more latkes (on Hanukkah!). Every year I order at least one large tray from there and every year they leave something out. One year I ordered a Kugel as part of my $400 order and when I went to pick it up I was informed that the person who makes their kugels wasn't well and they would not have one for me. Regarding customer service, forget it! Just go in there and see the total lack of customer service. The people behind the counter are totally indifferent. You don't get acknowledged or greeted or anything resembling a smile, ever. All of my business now goes to Steve's Deli on Hubbard. I can only believe people go into Ashkenaz because it is conveniently located for them. That is why I kept giving them chances. No longer. I want to be appreciated as a customer and not treated with callous indifference.
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Review from Paul L.
Chicago, IL
10/30/2007
Eat here. Don't like it? Eat here again to be sure.
Pastrami, corned beef, and Russian dressing on an onion roll made for a mouthgasm. Good god. So tasty, and the super salty pickle also provided was a perfect addition.
One of my top 3 places to have a sammich in Chi-Town, without question. -
Review from Euripides X.
ASTORIA, NY
6/22/2011
Go to Manny's instead. This place has nothing to offer.
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Review from Tommy M.
Vienna, VA
6/18/2011
Tried the reuben. It's not cheap (nearly $10) but worth it. The meat is superb, and is literally piled two inches high. The sauerkraut has a slightly sweet taste that I have never tasted before but is delicious. Highly recommended.
